ETF Evaluator:
First Trust Flexible Income ETF (FFLX)
Follow This ETF
(as of Sep 18)
Best Performing in Multisector Bond Over the Last Year
| 6.5% | Bluemonte Diversified Income ETF (BLUI) |
| 6.4% | Eaton Vance Income Opportunities ETF (XAGG) |
| 5.4% | Rareview Dynamic Fixed Income ETF (RDFI) |
| 5.3% | Neuberger Flexible Credit Income ETF (NBFC) |
| 5.3% | FolioBeyond Enhanced Fixed Inc Prm ETF (FIXP) |
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ETF Details
First Trust Flexible Income ETF Overview
First Trust Flexible Income ETF (FFLX) is an actively managed Taxable Bond Multisector Bond exchange-traded fund (ETF). First Trust launched the ETF in 2026.
The investment seeks to maximize current income.
The fund will invest a minimum of 50% of its net assets in: U.S. and non-U.S. corporate debt securities, including investment grade and below investment grade corporate debt securities; and U.S. and non-U.S. bank loans, including first lien senior secured floating and fixed rate bank loans (“Senior Loans”) and covenant lite loans. It is non-diversified.
About First Trust Flexible Income ETF (FFLX)
There are 9 members of the management team with an average tenure of 0.07 years: Scott Skowronski (2026), Robert Wolf (2026), William Housey (2026), Jeremiah Charles (2026), Kevin Ziets (2026), Owen Aronson (2026), Buo Zhang (2026), James Snyder (2026) and Todd Larson (2026). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.
First Trust Flexible Income ETF has 305 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 32.0% of the ETF’s assets. The ETF meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a nondiversified fund. The ETF is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
First Trust Flexible Income ETF is part of the Fixed Income global asset class and is within the Taxable Bond ETF group. First Trust Flexible Income ETF has 9.1% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 0.0% There is 0.0% allocated to foreign stock, and 1.4% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 97.1% (88.0% domestic bond, 9.1% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). First Trust Flexible Income ETF has 1.5% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $202 million in total assets, which is below the $1 billion average for the Multisector Bond category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.
FFLX Performance and Fees
The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The First Trust Flexible Income ETF expense ratio is above average compared to funds in the Multisector Bond category. First Trust Flexible Income ETF has an expense ratio of 0.65%, which is the same as its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a D. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.
High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. First Trust Flexible Income ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 0%, which indicates that it holds its assets around /years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 162% for the Multisector Bond category.
Recently, in the month of August 2026, First Trust Flexible Income ETF returned 0.0%, which earned it a grade of NA, as the Multisector Bond category had an average return of 0.6%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all ETFs in that category.
First Trust Flexible Income ETF has a trailing yield of 0.00%, which is below the 5.57% category average.
The fund normally distributes its income monthly and its capital gains annually.
It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.
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FFLX Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 8/31/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| FFLX Return (NAV) | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| FFLX Return (Price) | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Return | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Multisector Bond Avg | 0.6% | 0.3% | 3.8% | 6.5% | 1.9% | 3.1% |
| FFLX Grade (NAV) | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category (NAV) | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| FFLX Tax-Cost Ratio | na | na | na | na | na | na |
FFLX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 8/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| FFLX Return (NAV) | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| FFLX Return (Price) | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| NAV +/- Price Ret | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Multisector Bond Avg | 1.8% | 7.7% | 5.5% | 8.4% | -10.9% | 2.9% | 5.2% | 10.6% | -1.8% | 5.9% | 7.4% |
| FFLX Grade (NAV) | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Risk Measures | |
| Beta: | na |
| R-Squared: | na |
| Standard Deviation: | na |
| Category Risk Index: | na |
| Category Risk Rating: | |
| Total Risk Index: | na |
| Total Risk Rating: | |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Yield: | -- |
| Total Assets: | $ 202 Mil |
| Share Class Assets: | $ 202 Mil |
| Turnover: | na |
| Expense Ratio: | 0.65% |
| Index Fund: | No |
| Index Tracked: | N/A |
| Index Weighting: | 100% |
| Leveraged: | No |
| Socially Responsible Fund: | No |
| Capital Gains Distribution Frequency: | Annually |
| Income Distribution Frequency: | Monthly |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 9 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 0.1 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 0.1 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Skowronski Scott (2026), Wolf Robert (2026), Housey William (2026), Charles Jeremiah (2026), Ziets Kevin (2026), Aronson Owen (2026), Zhang Buo (2026), Snyder James (2026), Larson Todd (2026) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 8/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 305 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 32.0% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | Yes |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 9.1% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 1.4% |
| Domestic Bond: | 88.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 9.1% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 1.5% |
Purchase Information
| Legal Structure: | Open Ended Investment Company |
| Fund Family: | First Trust |
| Phone Number: | 800-621-1675 |
| Website: | |
| Inception Date: | August 7, 2026 |
Expenses and Fees
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.65% (Rating: Above Avg) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.65% |
